Synthesis report No 6: Traditional Foods in Europe

Traditions are customs or beliefs taught by one generation to the next, often by word of mouth, and they play an important role in cultural identification. Each culture, ethnic group or region has specific traditions. Some traditions, such as religious customs, overlap different cultures, ethnic groups or regions. 

Specific eating habits play an important role in the traditional habits of many cultures. The use of particular food ingredients and food preparation methods has been passed on from one generation to the next, and are nowadays referred to as 'traditional foods'. 

Traditional foods have played a major role in traditions of different cultures and regions for thousands of years. They include foods that have been consumed locally and regionally for an extended time period. Preparation methods of traditional foods are part of the folklore of a country or a region. Unfortunately, throughout Europe, some traditional foods are at risk of disappearing due to altered lifestyles. Therefore, it is important to study and document traditional foods to sustain important elements of European cultures. 

Most people can probably name at least one traditional food of the region they come from. Searching the internet for 'traditional foods' shows that numerous collections of traditional food recipes are available from countries worldwide. However, defining traditional foods is not as easy as it might be presumed. There are very few definitions available, and most of them have been developed relatively recently. One of these definitions has been prepared by EuroFIR. This EuroFIR definition is presented in chapter 2 and other definitions of 'traditional foods' can be found in annex 1. Chapter 3 summarises results of a consumer survey on the perception of traditional foods carried out in European countries.

In chapter 4, an overview of traditional foods in selected European countries can be found. This includes a brief history of traditional foods in these countries, i.e. which other cultures influenced the traditional cuisine or which historical events (e.g. the discovery of the 'New World') had an impact on traditional foods in Europe. Examples of five selected traditional foods from each country are presented in this chapter.

In the last part of the report, health aspects as well as the need to include traditional foods in European food composition databases are discussed. Also outlined in this Synthesis Report are the effects of globalisation on traditional foods and eating habits in Europe and consumers' perception of traditional foods. 

The aim of this report is to give an overview of traditional foods across Europe.